Quartile rating: 6.5/10 · 2 ratings
A clinically depressed teenager gets a new start after he checks himself into an adult psychiatric ward.
It's Kind of a Funny Story is a warm, earnest coming-of-age dramedy that benefits from a likable cast and a fresh setting—the adult psychiatric ward—that distinguishes it from typical teen films. The plot follows familiar beats of self-discovery but uses its unusual environment effectively. Keir Gilchrist and Zach Galifianakis share genuine chemistry, with Galifianakis delivering a surprisingly restrained dramatic performance. The cinematography is functional but unremarkable, typical of modest indie productions of its era. The ending resolves things a little too neatly and optimistically, softening the film's more challenging emotional material, but it's satisfying within the film's lighter tone.